Curtis Blades responded to Jon Jones calling their bout with Aspinall a contender fight
"Whichever one of us wins, I don't think Jon will fight anyone other than Stipe. After the Miocic fight, he'll walk off into the sunset. He likes to come up with different scenarios, like, 'What if I fight Alex Pereira? What if I fight Asinall?' What if my opponent is Blades?' but he just wants to be talked about, and I understand that. The more people talk about you, the more subscribers you have, and that helps with sponsors. Jon Jones knows what he's doing. Do I believe he would risk his legacy in a fight with a guy like me? Of course I don't. Because if he beats me, how does that affect his legacy? That's why I believe the fight with Aspinall is a fight for the reigning champion belt. When I told my family I was going to fight for the belt, I didn't say it was temporary. I said just a belt. Honestly, most casual fans don't understand the difference. They're probably perplexed, 'Why does Aspinall have a belt and Jones has a belt?' They don't understand the concept of an interim title and a current title, and they don't care about that. All they see is a shiny belt that you hold in the octagon. That's all they want. So for me, it's a real belt."
